


Growth Opportunities: Chapter Four

by gemini_cole



Series: Growth Opportunities [4]
Category: Chris Evans - Fandom
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-24
Updated: 2017-04-24
Packaged: 2018-10-23 07:55:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10715346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gemini_cole/pseuds/gemini_cole
Summary: Honor is a non-traditional student at Boston University who is assigned to be a TA for Film Studies Professor Chris Evans. Sparks and tensions fly, what will happen when Professor Evans tries to push Honor to "grow a little"?





	Growth Opportunities: Chapter Four

Growth Opportunities

Chapter Four

 

 

            “He actually said that?” Asia gaped at Honor, who was currently sprawled on the couch, one arm flung dramatically over her eyes. “What did you say to that?”

            “He actually said that, yes. And what could I say? He slammed the door behind me! Tell you what, though, I thought of a _ton_ to say on the way home. A veritable shitload. He’s going to get an earful let me tell you! In fact,” Honor shot up suddenly as if she intended to march all the way back to his office immediately.

            “Whoa, sis. Calm down. I don’t have the coin to bail you outta jail tonight.” Asia grabbed Honor’s wrist, yanking her back down on the couch. “Let’s work this out. What are you going to do?”

            Honor rolled her eyes. “As I think I just said, I’m going to tell him to go to hell. How dare he think-“

            “I meant about the TA job, babe.” Asia interjected.

            “Oh. That.”

            “Right, that. Are you still going to take it?”

            Honor sighed and slumped back down on the couch. “ I can hardly work for him after he said that. Hello? Awkward, no?”

            “But if you don’t take it, you’re basically fucked. You probably won’t get another shot at a TA position. Plus, it’ll boost your resume for when you start applying for internships and jobs. So yeah, hella awkward, but I think you’re gonna have to bite the bullet on this one.”

            Honor paused, considering. “I could still get another TA job. There’s got to be other departments.”

            “It wouldn’t bolster your resume like a related job would. And you’re going to need it, babe.”

            Honor arched an eyebrow at her.

            Asia shrugged. “You know it’s true. Yeah, you’ve got the GPA, but as a non-traditional student, everyone else has a couple years of experience on you. You’re going to have to have some extra oomph if you want to be taken seriously, and you know it.”

            Honor chewed on her thumbnail, considering. She knew Asia was right, though it sucked. Gathering her things from the floor where she’d flung them, she made her way to her bedroom, determined to go to sleep and wake up in a new alternate reality where she didn’t have to make these decisions. As she walked out of the room, Asia’s next words stopped her dead in her tracks.

            “I told you Professor Hottie wants in your pants.”

            Asia’s cackle at Honor’s rude gesture rang in her ears all the way down the hallway to her bedroom.

           

                                                **************************************

 

            The rest of the semester passed uneventfully. Honor turned in her revised paper and got a B. Not a word about that night was spoken aloud between herself and Professor Evans, but the underlying tension spoke volumes. He called on her with greater frequency in class, which Honor knew was his attempt at forcing her to “open herself up a little more.” Honor coolly answered his questions in class with as much aplomb as she could muster, but stubbornly refused to engage further. He never asked about her decision regarding the TA job, which just irked Honor even further. Was she really just a forgone conclusion? Did he think she was some desperate loser or something?

            She was still seething internally when December came and she received her email notification for TA orientation. At this point, she knew it was too late to back out without at least creating talk amongst the staff. Resigned to her fate, she braved a snarling early December snowstorm as she crossed campus from her apartment and marched up the steps to the administration building where orientation was being held and slipped inside. Even though she was one of the last to arrive, she took her time fixing a coffee and grabbing a complimentary muffin before sliding into a seat near the back. There was a large assembly-type welcoming speech for the entire group of TA’s before they broke off into smaller departmental groups, and Honor blew out a breath of relief upon seeing that Professor Evans seemed to have not made an appearance.

            Just as she thought she was going to fall back to sleep, coffee be damned, the assembly was over, and the room announcements were given for the departmental meetings. Grabbing her things, she made her way down the hall to the empty photocopy services room that would be serving as her meeting place. Taking a seat at an empty round table sandwiched on both sides by shelves crammed with reams of paper, photocopies, and dusty old boxes of toner, Honor watched as three other students shuffled in and sat down. A girl of maybe nineteen, all in black who clearly took herself way too seriously, introduced herself as Margeaux, and took the effort to say “eaux, _not_ O, because I’m not white trash.” She promptly pulled the hood of her hoodie up around her fuchsia hair and laid her head down on the table. Honor couldn’t tell if she was really asleep or just totally uninterested. Then came a dude in hipster glasses named Dirk, and a redhead named Maggie. Honor knew she was the oldest there by at least two years. Maggie took it upon herself to go around the table and get everyone’s names and whom they were assigned to. Maggie was with Professor Davida, due to her concentration in costume design. Dirk was with Professor Jackson, due to his major in screenwriting. No one could get an answer out of Margeaux, so Maggie moved on to Honor, who had anticipated the question, and piped up, “Honor Phillips, I’m TA’ing for Professor Evans, but I’m not in the film department, I’m in journalism.”

            A hush fell over the table. Even Margeaux with the –eaux opened one eye in interest.

            Dirk was first. “Wait. Phillips like Malcolm Phillips? Like gazillionaire dude? Are you like, his kid or something?”

            Honor sighed. It took all her effort not to roll her eyes, but at this point, she had years of practice. “Yep. That’s my dad.”

            “Dude. Cool. Like, why are you a TA? Couldn’t your dad just buy you a degree or something?”

            Maggie interjected. “I don’t think it works like that, dumbass. So,” she continued, turning towards Honor, “you’re his new one?”

            Honor took a sip of her now cold coffee before responding. “Who’s new one?”

            “Professor Evans. You’re his new intern.”

            Honor shrugged. “I guess?”

            Maggie smirked as her eyes swept over Honor, taking in her appearance. “He knows how to pick ‘em, I guess.” She turned back toward the rest of the table. “You guys heard about the last time he had a TA, right?”

            Dirk stood up and yawned. “I don’t care about trivial bullshit. You think I can steal some of this paper? Everyone in the dorm steals mine.” He strolled over to the shelves and started pulling reams off the wall.

            “The school keeps track of those, you might want to reconsider.”

            Everyone jerked to attention at the new, masculine voice. Turning towards the doorway were three professors, Professor Evans among them. All of them stood expectantly, appraising the group that sat before them. Professor Davida looked to her colleagues who both gave slight nods in agreement as she stepped forward, clearly the chosen professor to lay down the law, she went over what was expected from them. They would each take turns manning the front desk for the main office of the Film Studies department, as well as their individual tasks for their professor. They may cover for each other for illnesses, absences, etc., but only with approval from their professors beforehand. As she went on, Maggie leaned over, whispering in Honor’s ear.

            “So you do know what happened with his last intern right?”

            Honor whispered back, “No one gossips with the non-trads. What are you talking about?”

            Maggie smirked. “His last intern, she had to leave school mid-term. And she never came back.”

            Honor shrugged. “Like never came back that semester or never came back at all? What happened?” She lifted her coffee to her lips for another sip.

            “Supposedly she was knocked up. Couldn’t finish the semester. She transferred to a community college closer to home. Can you imagine, community college?”

            The dregs of her coffee stuck in the back of her throat as she tried to swallow. She found herself staring at Professor Evans. As he stood there, arms crossed, focused on Professor Davida’s speech, it was as if he felt her gaze. His eyes found hers and he smiled briefly, winking innocuously at her.

            _And he said he wasn’t that kind of professor_ , she thought glumly.


End file.
